LeBron James will go down as one of the greatest NBA players of all-time, of that there is no doubt. That said, there’s plenty of debate about where he belongs on the top 10 list of NBA legends. There are some, like Charles Barkley, that think he still has work to do to even reach the top 5, namely in the winning department where his three rings are trumped by the likes of Kobe Bryant and others.
However, there are plenty that already put him near the top of that list and think it’s reasonable to at least have the conversation about him being better than Michael Jordan. Jeff Van Gundy is among those that has said the two are close, whether James wins another title or not, and as James continues his career and climbs more and more all-time lists, those arguments will only become more heated.
There could very well be a good argument for James over Jordan, but as Damian Lillard explained succinctly on Twitter, it probably won’t matter to fans that grew up idolizing Jordan how convincing James supporters are, no one will pass Jordan in their minds.
I don't think ppl will ever be able to admit someone is better than Jordan even if they are lol… https://t.co/DiLT7BLHd5
— Damian Lillard (@Dame_Lillard) August 30, 2017
Jordan isn’t just an all-time great for many fans, he’s an icon and and idol. It wasn’t just a catchy slogan, everyone really did want to be like Mike that grew up watching him. Lillard, in this case, acknowledges that James or someone else in the future could very well surpass Jordan in many objective categories, but it won’t matter for the Jordan diehards.
Jordan is almost a mythical figure with what he could do on the court, and, as always comes up in a James-Jordan debate, his six championships is enough for some to negate any other accomplishments that LeBron could end up ahead of Jordan in. This debate won’t be going away anytime soon and will only escalate as LeBron’s career moves forward, just don’t be surprised when Jordan fans refuse to listen.
